Assessment | British Council

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Equity and validity in high-stakes testing: Insights from IELTS

Explore how international language tests can ensure fairness and validity for test-takers with disabilities through equitable accommodations.

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Supporting visually impaired learners throughout learning and assessment

How can teachers make language learning fully accessible for visually impaired learners? Practical strategies show how inclusive materials, methods and assessments empower every student.

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Investigating the washback potential of an English speaking test in the Japanese university entrance exam context

This Assessment Research Grant report is a hypothetical qualitative study investigating the potential introduction of the BCT-S, a university entrance speaking assessment, in Japan.

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Speaking assessment constructs: evolution or revolution in the AI era?

Generative AI is transforming speaking assessment, shifting from static measures to dynamic, interactive tasks and redefining constructs like fluency. Join our webinar to learn more.

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The shifting landscape of English requirements: Supporting international student success in UK Higher Education

New research explores the use of English language tests in UK higher education, providing insights to optimise admissions and enhance international student success.

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Applying the Lexile Framework to evaluate text complexity in the Chinese context: A corpus-based study

Discover how well the Lexile Framework fits China’s English exams, and what it reveals about reading demands across the four key stages of education.

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The impact of textual features in academic journals on learner engagement

Improving sentence structure and flow, not just vocabulary, can boost how well engineering students understand academic texts

Knowledge-based Vocabulary Lists (KVL)

Discover the 5,000 words learners know best. The Knowledge-based Vocabulary Lists (KVL) were created as part of an innovative research project sponsored by the British Council.

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Aligning language education with the CEFR: a handbook

This Handbook is for teachers, testers, and policymakers working to align language education with the CEFR, offering practical guidance and insights for real-world application.

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Exploring the potential for assessing interactional and pragmatic competence in semi-direct speaking tests

Explore how a semi-direct speaking test can capture a broader range of real-world communication skills